The board-certified cardiologist and author is on a mission to close the heart disease gap in the Black community, one conversation at a time
Black Americans develop heart disease at twice the rate of other racial groups, and Dr. Eddie Hackler III has made closing that gap his life’s work. The Atlanta-based, board-certified cardiologist trained at Meharry Medical College, the University of Texas Southwestern, and Case Western Reserve University, and has taken his message beyond the clinic as @theblackdoctor on social media. He is also the author of Follow Your Heart.
What made you become a cardiologist?
Heart disease is the number one killer of all people. I want to do the most good for the most people. But specifically for the Black community, we suffer heart disease at rates twice as high as other races, so I also wanted to do something that was going to be important for our people as well. That led me to cardiology.
What are three things people can do immediately to benefit their heart?
People can begin moving. We recommend 30 minutes a day, five times a week of at least moderate intensity activity. That could just be brisk walking around your neighborhood or on a treadmill. If you’re smoking, stop smoking. That’s probably one of the quickest things you can do for your heart. And then watching your diet, paying attention to what you’re eating. Staying away from saturated fats decreases your cholesterol and your risk of heart attacks and strokes.
What does a cardiologist say to the grind culture mentality that keeps young entrepreneurs from sleeping and resting?
It’s understandable, because that’s what society puts on us, this pressure to produce and to be valuable. But rest is so important. Studies show that people who don’t get enough sleep die earlier. You can not sleep now, but you won’t be not sleeping for a long time. If you want to live long and do the best that you can, your body needs rest. Your heart needs it.
What should families know about sharing heart disease history with each other?
Use family gatherings as a great time to have these conversations. What’s important to know specifically is if anyone in your immediate family, your parents, your siblings, or your children have had heart attacks at an early age. For men, that means under 55. For women, under 65. Also, if anyone has died of sudden cardiac death, or if anyone has died unexpectedly and we don’t know why. Those are three major categories of family history that are important.
What role should family play when a loved one receives a heart disease diagnosis?
Your village is so important. Hold your family member accountable for what they know they should be doing, but what may be hard to change immediately. Don’t berate your family members, but be there for them and remind them, hey, we need to do this in order for us to continue to take care of you.
Support them however they need it. Some people need help with transportation, some need help with their medications. Ask them, how can I help support you throughout this journey? What is going to be the hardest thing for you, and how can I step up to make sure that you succeed?
How do you build trust with patients in the Black community so they feel comfortable being honest with you?
This is where the art of medicine comes in. I can know all the things to do for you, but if I don’t have a relationship with the patient, they may not listen to anything I say. I’m a human being at the end of the day. I bleed just like you bleed. There’s nothing special about me. I’m just in a position to help you.
I approach it like, if you were my dad, my brother, my grandmother, these are the things I would recommend. And if you tell me a medicine is not working well for you, we’re going to talk about how it’s making you feel, talk about some alternatives, and see if we can still get you the most benefit while also giving you a quality of life that you enjoy. It’s a team effort.
What tests should men and women over 40 ask for if they’re not being offered?
Most people at that age are getting their cholesterol checked. I would also recommend asking your doctor to check lipoprotein A. That’s a genetic cardiovascular lipid test that is not dictated by what you eat or what you do. It’s passed on, and it can let us know what your heart risks may be.
Another test is apolipoprotein B. And a CT cardiac calcium score is another great preventative test, especially for people at intermediate or low risk who still want more information to help guide decisions about how aggressive we need to be with lifestyle changes. Those three are good tests that probably aren’t always offered, but good to ask your doctor about.
What can people do to manage their cholesterol before it becomes a problem?
Diet is the most important thing you can do for your cholesterol. Saturated fat, found in red meats, fried foods, greasy foods, processed foods, and a lot of sweets, is what actually increases your bad cholesterol, the LDL. That is what builds up in arteries and leads to heart attacks and strokes. Exercise can decrease your cholesterol as well. Weight loss helps too. And making sure your other risk factors, like hypertension or diabetes, are well controlled.
What do you want young people of color to know about becoming a cardiologist?
I’m not a genius. I was just determined and disciplined. If I can do it, you can do it. You just have to want it badly enough. Another reason is that it’s bigger than me, bigger than my family. This is something for the culture. By becoming a cardiologist, you have a direct impact on what’s going to kill most of us. And there are people like me here to help support anyone who wants to follow in our footsteps. Heart disease is expected to increase, not decrease. That pipeline has to still be there.
What does discipline mean to you?
Discipline is staying true to what you said you were going to do long after the motivation that you felt when you said it has gone away. You reach roadblocks, apathy, influences that may make you want to stop or go off course. Stand true to what you said you wanted. No matter what that deterrence looks like, whether it’s family, friends, or yourself, overcoming those things to get to the end goal is what discipline is.
What does it feel like to have a cultural calling as a cardiologist?
Sometimes being in medicine right now can be draining. We’re pushed to see as many people as possible, and that doesn’t always equate to the best care. When you go outside the walls of the hospital and into communities to reach people where they are, and you see the impact you have, it reassures you that you’re on the right path and makes you want to continue.
It becomes a “why” on those days when it feels hard. There are people who I’m not looking at right now who are looking at me for motivation and for their health. If I can continue on in whatever way that looks like, I can continue making that impact. It feels good. It feels invigorating.
Tell us about your book, Follow Your Heart.
Follow Your Heart is a book about achieving your goals, whether you want to be an engineer, a teacher, or a doctor. It will motivate you, but also prepare you for hurdles and circumstances that will inevitably come. I sprinkled in some of my own anecdotes for each of those hurdles I faced and how I got over them, to give you some insight into the struggles I’ve had and how I overcame them.